4 Grape Dinner Plates

25-Character Title 4 Grape Dinner Plates (22) Alternates: 4 Metlox Dinner Plates (22) 4 Sculptured Grape Dinner (25) Grape 10in Dinners Set 4 (24) HiBid DESCRIPTION FOUR METLOX POPPYTRAIL SCULPTURED GRAPE DINNER PLATES - 10-1/2 INCH Four vintage California earthenware dinner plates in the Sculptured Grape pattern by Metlox Poppytrail. Each plate has a scalloped edge and the pattern's wide embossed border of blue grape clusters, deep green and sage-green grape leaves, curling brown tendrils, and small yellow-gold blossom sprigs, hand-painted over the raised relief on an off-white ground, with a soft brown-olive line following the scalloped rim. The centers are plain with faint throwing rings. These are the full-size dinner plates in the pattern, the hardest size to find in quantity, and they match the other Sculptured Grape lots offered separately in this sale, including the cups and cup and saucer sets, the salad and bread plates, the large oval platter, the round serving bowl, the gravy and butter pieces, the creamer and sugar, and the shakers. These plates have seen real table use: all four show heavy overall crazing in the center wells with brown and amber staining following the crazing lines, along with utensil scratching, and the rim line is rubbed thin in places. They will still serve, and they display well face-out on a plate rack or wall where the border shows and the well does not, but bidders wanting pristine plates should look at the smaller-size lots instead. Sold as a lot of four plates. Description Four dinner plates with scalloped rims and raised grape, leaf, tendril, and blossom borders in relief; plain centers. Glazed earthenware, hand-painted over the embossed decoration; plain glazed white undersides with a broad low foot ring. Each measures approximately 10-1/2 inches in diameter per the tape-measure photograph. The tape hook is resting on top of the plate rim rather than hooked over the edge, so the figure is a close estimate and the true rim-to-rim measurement may read slightly larger. Bidders should verify all dimensions from the photographs. The undersides carry the script backstamp reading "HAND PAINTED - Sculptured Grape - Poppytrail by METLOX - MADE IN CALIF. U.S.A." with two small lines of finer text between that appear to read "Safe in oven and dishwasher Durable". The script "Poppytrail" line is smeared and doubled in printing and the fine-print lines are only partly legible, so those readings are given as best interpretation rather than certainty. Attribution note Metlox Pottery operated in Manhattan Beach, California, founded in 1927 by T. C. Prouty and his son Willis Prouty, first making outdoor ceramic signs and then producing dinnerware under the Poppytrail name from the early 1930s until the plant closed in 1989. Replacements, Ltd. catalogs this pattern as Sculptured Grape by Metlox in the Poppytrail-Vernon line, discontinued, with production running roughly from 1963 to 1986, describing it as raised blue grapes with green leaves and vines on a white ground, and lists the dinner plate at roughly 10-3/8 to 10-5/8 inches, consistent with these. Note that this script mark differs from the circular "Poppytrail by Metlox" stamp found on other pieces in this same consignment, which is normal for the pattern's long production run. Related versions exist, including an all-white grape pattern and a pink grape colorway, so buyers matching an existing service should compare colors closely against the photographs. Identification and dating here are offered as the consignor's photo-based opinion and are not guaranteed. Bid on the items as pictured. Condition Used vintage condition, sold as-is. All four plates show heavy overall crazing across the center wells, with the crazing lines darkened brown and amber from age and use, giving the wells a stained, netted appearance clearly visible in the close-up photographs. Gray and brown utensil scratching and cutting marks are present throughout the wells. The brown-olive line along the scalloped rims is rubbed and thinned in spots with bare glaze showing through, and rim edges show light wear from stacking. Scattered faint tan and gray specks appear on the undersides, and one backstamp is smeared in printing. No chips, cracks, or repairs are apparent in the photographs, but the plates have not been examined under magnification and no such guarantee is made. Photos are part of the description. Notes for bidders Although the mark states the ware is oven and dishwasher safe, that claim dates to the original production and does not apply well to pieces in this condition: with crazing this advanced, hand wash only in warm water, dry promptly, and do not soak, since moisture entering the crazing lines will deepen the staining. No microwave use is recommended. Use felt or paper separators when stacking and pad the scalloped rims for transport. Only the pieces pictured are included in this lot. Terms Sold as-is, where-is, with no